With the rise of the internet and the worldwide connectivity it offers, so has online medical care. Online medical care, otherwise referred to as “telehealth or telemedicine,” is defined as the accessing of medical information and attention remotely through the use of the internet. However, due to the rise of the digital divide with the advancing of technology, not all people have equal access to online healthcare, and this has had adverse effects on a large number of them.

Digital divide is the difference in accessibility or literacy in the use of digital devices, media, and networks because of economical or demographical reasons. This digital divide is very evident in the online medical community as people of all ages and economical statuses need medical attention. Firstly, according to Datareportal, only 64.4% of the world’s population in 2023 has access to the internet; which may be due to economical or geographical reasons. As such, those not included in the 64.4% are immediately unable to access online medical attention. Furthermore, as reported by the U.S. Department of Education, only 23% of adults internationally are digitally literate, adding to those unable to access online medical attention. Additionally, those with mediocre media literacy skills or of a lower or higher age are more likely to fall for misinformation and disinformation online, which may jeopardize their search for medical information online.

A study done by Jiajie Yu and Shuang Meng (2022) reported that the access to internet significantly increased wellbeing and alleviated healthcare inequality. With this, it can be argued that the inaccessibility of certain demographics to online healthcare would reduce its effectiveness in those communities. Furthermore, these communities with little access to online healthcare are those who need it the most. These communities include the poor, who are not financially able enough to make a doctor’s appointment; and those who live in remote areas, who live too far from a clinic. These people, however, are also unable to access online medical attention despite it being advertised as oftentimes free medical attention that can reach all. Furthermore, the too young and the too old, who are less likely to be digitally literate, are also unable to properly operate the gadgets used to access online medical attention. This is despite them needing medical attention more than others as they are more prone to diseases and accidents. With these, it is worth mentioning that this digital divide in online healthcare may become the cause of people not receiving the appropriate medical attention. This may lead to unnecessary death and disease, as well as the spreading of misinformation around areas affected by this digital divide.

The digital divide in medical care truly is a major problem that must be given more attention as this deals with the people’s lives. As the root of the economical and geographical issues is connectivity, perhaps governments should focus on building internet infrastructure to more remote and poor areas, allowing them access to the medical care they need but are unable to access. Additionally, to alleviate the literacy issue healthcare websites may attempt to simplify the website design and attempt to make it more user friendly. Lastly, everyone must raise awareness on the problem of digital divide, especially in medicine, and how to personally alleviate these issues.